News at Six Complaint Stage 1: BBC Response 4

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YOUR COMPLAINT:

Complaint Summary: Lack of due accuracy, impartiality & prominence

Full Complaint: Dear Lucia Fortucci, Thank you for your email of 06/08/2014. Video, audio or transcripts are no longer necessary as your email confirms the ONS statistics were given zero prominence or weight on the ‘News at Six’ on the day of their announcement (22 July 2014). I would argue that the ONS announcement is due greater prominence than the IMF’s for the following reasons: 1) The ONS statistic is a statement of hard scientific fact. The IMF’s forecast is an estimate, opinion, or guess. 2) The IMF’s forecast SUGGESTS the economy MAY BE moving marginal faster in an already predicted direction. The ONS statistic PROVES the deficit has moved significantly in the opposite direction to the one predicted. Therefore, the ONS statistic has much greater information, news and public interest value than the IMF forecast and is therefore due greater prominence, proving that the ‘News at Six’ on 22 July 2014 was in direct breach of Editorial Guidelines 3.4.21, 4.4.12, 4.4.13 and 14.4.4. I look forward to receiving the BBC’s opinion on why this is not the case. Please Note: I wish any discussion on this matter to be open and transparent to public scrutiny and therefore require all correspondence between the BBC and myself to be subject to that understanding.

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